They’ll step onto the blistering sand but not notice the initial tingle of pain. That’s mainly due to the calluses they’ve built on their soles.

But it’s all due to what they have in their souls. When the AVP Tour hits Southern California, every player, male or female, believes they have the home-court advantage.

Maybe you can’t compare this weekend’s Hermosa Beach Open with the Manhattan Beach Open in terms of a personal reward for winning. But you can’t compare Hermosa with anything else, either.

The main draw opens this morning and it’s on. Players arrive here after traveling the world and the country, but the deep sand of the South Bay brings out a fight like no other in beach volleyball.

You want to be remembered? You can start by winning here.

“Every time Hermosa rolls around, you definitely have to bring out your `A’ game,” veteran Ty Loomis said. “There are always a few legendary things that happen every Hermosa Open.”

Legend Ron Von Hagen won the first four events there. Sinjin Smith and Randy Stoklos held epic championship battles year after year against Mike Dodd and Tim Hovland in the 1980s.

Karch Kiraly won six times in eight years in the 1990s with two different partners.

In 2005, Casey Jennings and Matt Fuerbringer lost in the third round, fought back to win two three-game matches to reach the final and then beat Dax Holdren and Jeff Nygaard in three games to capture the crown.

The enduring sight after that 1-hour, 8-minute match was Jennings counting the number of toenails the searing sand had stolen from him in his quest for Hermosa glory.

And no one knows the struggle better than Loomis. A month after he and Casey Patterson won the 2009 AVP Coney Island Open, they found themselves in the contender’s bracket after falling to top seeds Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers in the third round.

They could not have possibly anticipated what was to follow. But they knew what was at stake.

“For us, it’s just the respect and credibility you get from proving yourself in big events,” Loomis said. “There are a lot of great players on the tour, and a lot of great players have played on the tour before, but to really put yourself in the legendary class of the best of all players, you have to win Huntington, Hermosa or Manhattan.

“You can be great and win other tournaments, but ’til you win Hermosa, Manhattan or Huntington, that’s what sets you apart.”

Loomis and Patterson met Joey Dykstra and Albert Hannemann next and promptly landed with a thud by dropping the first game, 21-16.

The next game turned ridiculous. Both teams scrapped and refused to give in and neither did until Loomis and Patterson stayed alive with a 38-36 win, a record for most points in an AVP match.

An hour and a half later, they stepped back onto the court to take on Nygaard and John Mayer, who took the first game in overtime, 22-20. They went to Game 2 and that points record was obliterated; Patterson and Loomis won, 40-38, then took the third game, 15-10.

“You feel the vibe. All the Southern California events are so fun,” Patterson said. “All you think about is the long, grueling, battling matches. This is where everyone trains, they get to go home and sleep in their own beds, they’re refreshed, relaxed. These ones, you have to expect to battle a little more than other ones.”

A little more?

“There’s a certain point you feel yourself running low on energy, but as soon as that hits, then you just all of a sudden feel the energy of the crowd and how epic the match really is and being tired goes away,” Loomis said. “You might have some deep breaths between each rally, but the bigger picture allows you to get in the zone – this is the Hermosa Open.

“When we started playing Nygaard and Mayers, me and Casey were definitely drained. We got our butts kicked in the first game and then I decided to try an old recipe.”

Ahem. Beer. Don’t tell the cops.

“It kind of gets you an energy boost,” Loomis said. “You’re on reserves and anything at that point helps.

“To begin with, if you’re not in the best shape, the sand will get you.”

Or Dalhausser and Rogers will. The Olympic gold medalists are on fire in 2010, finishing on top in all four AVP events (with a 23-0 record), and capturing five of eight FIVB tournaments, reaching at least the semifinals all eight times.

They’re trying to win their fifth consecutive Hermosa title, and they’ve beaten a different team in each of the past four finals.

Their top challengers are Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal, who have beaten Dalhausser and Rogers three times in seven meetings on the FIVB tour this year.